Nepali women’s team to play two friendlies against Thailand

KATHMANDU: The Nepali national women’s team is playing two friendly matches against Thailand to prepare for the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualification.

According to the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA), the matches will be played in Bangkok on May 30 and June 2.

Head Coach Rajendra Tamang has called 48 players for closed-camp training for the friendlies and qualification matches.

Nepal is placed in Group ‘F’ of the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualification alongside Uzbekistan, Laos, and Sri Lanka. Nepal will play its first match against Laos on June 29, followed by matches against Sri Lanka on July 2 and Uzbekistan on July 5.

All Group ‘F’ matches will be played in Uzbekistan.

A total of 34 teams will compete in the qualification. They are divided into eight groups — six groups have four teams each, while two groups have five teams each.

The 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup will feature 12 teams

The winners of each group will qualify for the Asian Cup. Hosts Australia, 2022 champions China, first runner-up South Korea and second runner-up Japan have already qualified for the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. Eight group winners also qualify for the event.